MANURE

Exploring the circular economy in the dairy sector

milk

CONCEN-TRATES

20%

WATER PURIFICATIO

N

WATERPURIFICATIO

N

MANUREPOWER

PLANT

FOOD

INDUSTRY

DAIRY FACTORY

SUPERMARKET

BIOMASS

PLANT

BIOGAS

FactoryFarm

Farm

Consumer

yogurtyogurtyogurt condensedcondensedcondensedcondensedmilkmilkmilk

creamcreamcream

milk

Optimizing manure use• Soil enrichment• Digestion into biogas • Dehydration into organic pelleted fertilizer(digestate)

Sustainable milk processing• Heating and operations on green energy• Water reuse• Minimal food waste thanks to optimized byproduct use• Biogas transport

Feed ingredients• Grass and corn (92%) from a farmer’s own land or from the region• Concentrates (8%), incl. corn, beets and byproducts from the food industry (20%)

The Life Cycle Tool optimizes mineral use.

Food securityMilk and dairy products contribute to healthy diets around the world.

Sustainable energy production• Wind energy• Solar panels• Heat recovery from milk

From Dutch soil• Grass grows on 14% of our country’s land• Cows turn grass into nutritional protein

N = nitrogenP = phosphorous K = potassium

milk

Less food wasteTips for consumers

A bird’s-eye view of the circular dairy economy

MANURE

The PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency identifies three conditions

for a circular food system in its report “Food for the circular economy”: sustainable

management of natural resources, limited food waste, and optimized use of

byproducts.

The Dutch dairy sector has relied on a circular food system to some degree for many

years. For example, cows in the Netherlands often graze on lands that are not suited

for agriculture. Cows can turn grass, which is indigestible for humans, into milk – thus

providing us with a delicious food product rich in protein.

Optimized byproduct streams have been introduced in the dairy sector in recent

years. Take whey, for example. Whey is a co-product of the manufacture of cheese. It

was once used as an ingredient in animal feed, but today it has become an important

component in a range of consumer products.

This brochure illustrates the many key elements of the circular economy already

found in the dairy sector. But plenty of challenges still lie ahead. We look forward to

working with other stakeholders to tackle these together.

This is a publication of the Dutch Dairy Association. www.nzo.nl, 2016.